Step 7 of Web Site Marketing: Public Relations

First the quick recap on this little web site marketing series.

Step 1 – Added Google Analytics to your web site

Step 2 – Made up a simple web site marketing plan

Step 3 – Started implementing various search engine optimisation strategies (that is, stuff to help your web site get listed higher in the search engines)

Step 4 – Added your web site to Google Maps/Local/Places

Step 5 - Gotten involved in your niche community

Step 6 – Harness the power of social media

Now most of the above relates to online type marketing of your web site.

But here’s the thing.

Offline Marketing Works – Especially PR

Offline marketing – specifically public relations – is amongst the most successful sort of marketing I’ve ever had impact on my own web sites.

• Getting a web site featured on a national current affairs TV show can have an almost life-changing impact.
• Having a gig on a local radio show gets you lots of site visitors and tons of credibility.
• Writing a best selling book on web design business (awwww shucks!) also gets you tons of visitors and loads of credibility.

PR is so effective because it’s someone/something with 2 critical things giving you an independent 3rd party endorsement – that is, they’re saying they trust you and their audience should do.

The 2 critical things the media have is:

• a huge audience
• credibility

If you can get your product/service so remarkable as to be newsworthy, then it’s a chance to get a run and generate massive publicity.

Publicity Gets Results

Publicity results in credibility, widespread awareness and sales.

Lots of sales.

So get your business/story/product remarkable and approach the media to see if they’d like to run with it.

My old publicist was the brillant Chelsea McLean (Chelsea mainly does book publicity now, but she has some terrific information over at her web site.

You’ll find an interview I did with Chelsea over here on Tailored Podcast.

You’ll also find a few bits of information on generating media interest on this site here, here and here on how to be a media star.